Far-right Israeli groups plan further violence against Palestinians after night of lynching
Screenshots from far-right Israeli WhatsApp and Signal groups reveal plans to harm Palestinians, as Amnesty denounces government inaction
Lubna Masarwa, Frank Andrews
13 May 2021
Far-right Israeli groups are planning to mount further attacks against Palestinians in Israel on Thursday night, according to group chat messages seen by MEE, after a night of lynching, crackdowns by Israeli security forces and deaths across Israel, the West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza on Wednesday.
“Bring everything, knives, gasoline,” read one message in a group chat named “The Underground Unit” – seemingly on Signal – with several hundred members. “Don’t be scared, we are the chosen ones.”
“Good job at Bat Yam yesterday,” another message read, referring to a spate of violence in the Tel Aviv suburb which saw a Palestinian man lynched live on Israeli television. “Today we’ll go back to make some mess at 6pm. Let’s meet at the seafront.”
Far-right groups such as Lehava and La Familia have also been planning attacks in Jerusalem, according to Haaretz.
On Thursday afternoon, Israeli police called on parents to “take responsibility” for their children and keep them from participating in the country-wide violence, the paper reported.
In another message, which appeared to be posted to WhatsApp, on a group called Israel People Alive Haifa, a forwarded message gave the location of a Palestinian march in Tel Aviv. “Any Arab you see – you stab,” it read. “Please come equipped with flags, bats, knives, guns, brass knuckles, wooden boards, pepper spray, anything that would hurt them. We will restore the honor of the Jewish people.”
Videos posted on Thursday evening appeared to confirm far-right Israelis were marching in the Tel Aviv areas mentioned in the group.
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